By Steve Metsch
After 10 years as Countryside Police Chief and 40 years in law enforcement, Joe Ford has decided it’s time to retire.
Ford, 62, said his last day as chief will be May 13.
Mayor Sean McDermott announced Ford’s plan to step down during the April 12 meeting of the city council.
“Forty years. Forty years of anything anymore,” Ford said after the meeting.
“I say this all the time. When someone says you become a police officer, you get the shining suit of armor. You walk out of the academy all shiny.
“It’s not big events or little events. It’s a combination of events throughout your career that put dings in your armor. They eat you up,” Ford said.
Few police officers stay on duty 40 years, he said. “The average now is about 25, 27 years.”
He’s noticed a declined interest in the profession.
“When we had tests, we’d have 50, 60 people here. Now we have five,” Ford said. “And we’re one of the only fully staffed departments in the area.”
Before he became chief in Countryside, Ford spent 30 years working for the Burbank Police Department in a variety of positions.
Ford said he and his wife plan to split time between homes in the Chicago area and on Florida’s “Space Coast.” McDermott said the city council planned to give Ford a send-off at April 26 meeting.